This Friday night, guests at Hopkinsville Brewing Company will be greeted with chairs that are painted, embroidered, cut out from barrels, and even home to gardens. It’s all part of a fundraiser in which local artists “funkify” chairs to auction for local non-profit, Sanctuary, Inc.
Julie-Anna Carlisle, artist and coordinator for The Chair Project took some time out of event planning this week to talk with Station Manager Asia Burnett about the project.
Why Chairs?
“There’s so much you can do with a chair. It’s a functional piece that everyone can use” said Carlisle.
On top of that, there’s a nice parallel between the purpose of a chair and the goal of the fundraiser.
A chair being something to give you support, to give you rest. A chair says ‘I have your back’. All of these things that definitely resonate with what Sanctuary does on daily, minute-by-minute purpose with so many people who need service and safety.Julie-Anna Carlisle
The Cause
Sanctuary, Inc. is a non-profit agency committed to serving victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. Since 1982, they have provided support to women, men and children who have experienced interpersonal violence in the nine-county area of the Pennyrile Area Development District, including Caldwell, Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Livingston, Lyon, Muhlenberg, Todd and Trigg counties.
Carlisle said, "even one time is too many", but Sanctuary, Inc. helps heal, provide safety, and a space for survivors to come forward.
Haiku Contest
In addition to the physical, artistic creativity of the chairs, there’s also a celebration of literary creativity that night, with a haiku contest.
Jennifer Brown - Editor of the Hoptown Chronicle hosts the contest soliciting community haiku about chairs, benches, stools, etc. The entry deadline Wednesday, June 24 at 11 p.m. You can email your submission to editor@hoptownchronicle.org.
“A haiku is like something you learned in elementary school… but there’s also really thought-provoking haiku and we’ve already received those.”
Looking for some haiku inspiration? Here’s one Brown wrote last year:
Grandmother’s kitchen
take a seat and we will roll
Yahtzee dice for hours
The best haiku will be awarded the night of the event, but they’ll name and publish honorable mentions at the Hoptown Chronicle site.
How to help - even from afar
The Chair Project event and auction will be at Hopkinsville Brewing Company - Friday, June 26, 2026 from 5 to 7 p.m. and the entire community is invited to participate.
As Carlisle says, “We have a lot of artists who have poured out their time and their talent to support this cause. Now we need patrons. We need people to come and fall in love with a chair and make a bid. Support an artist’s vision and all support a very, very worthy, needed cause.”
If you’re not in Hopkinsville and want to participate, never fear. Online bids will be accepted at The Chair Project Facebook Page.
